re: Let's get political!

The Fart of the Squeal in full effect

We got sold a vacuum cleaner, sons

Trump really is the basket case fool you always thought he was somewhere in the back of your mind

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Ukraine is a money laundering business perpetrated by the EU and England. Zero reason people should be dying there.

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The hatred between Russians and Ukrainians runs deep, as the Russians have tried to wipe the Ukrainians out on multiple occasions. For example, the Russians slaughtered millions of Ukrainians during the 30s and then again after WW2. To give just a little idea of how strong the feelings still were/are even decades later: I was part of a student exchange with the USSR back in the '80s. As one part of the program, they took us to Kiev, and while there, they took us to what was at the time known as the monument to Russian-Ukrainian Friendship. Our Intourist guide - a Soviet government employee - explained that he was the only Ukrainian there at that time, and that he was only there because he had to take us, and the only way any Ukrainian would ever go there would be to piss on it.

It's a level of hatred that is really only matched between everyone in the Balkans and everyone else in the Balkans.

I see lightening the mood is not in your wheelhouse?

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This has been totally worth depleting our stockpiles. What a gift from Trump. Thank you Mr. President.

Let the games begin

"Oh my God, we're running out of Tomahawks!!!!" has been a refrain since the Clinton presidency. Every administration since Bush I has been a fan of using Tomahawks, but it wasn't until very recently that anyone bothered to authorize increased production of them. The goal had previously always been to maintain the minimum amount necessary. At least that is finally been addressed, and increased production has been authorized.

Combat is munitions intensive, yet *nobody* ever seems to give it much thought. Hell, you can go all the way back to the "shell crisis" in WWI, the US Navy's torpedo shortage in WW2, etc. The same thing happened again in Ukraine, as both Russia and Ukraine found themselves periodically running low on munitions, though Ukraine had more limited stocks to begin with. Even NATO couldn't supply them with much, because their own stocks were so low. Everyone has now increased shell production since.

Noticing that politicians of all stripes tend to play kick the can with an issue and never really do anything about it until very late in the game? Noting that a long-term issue that is finally being remedied is not exactly an unexpected event? I had to write position papers on this stuff nearly 30 years ago when I worked in DC.

Trump has been more than happy to use Tomahawks, just like his predecessors, but unlike them, he has - belatedly - at least done something to increase production. He's not exactly alone in that, either; other NATO/allied countries have also woken up to the fact that they need to substantially boost their munitions supplies in order to be ready for any current/pending conflict.

If nothing else, Ukraine showed Western militaries that the can could not be kicked much further.